Machaba Camp & Little Machaba October Game Sightings

What an incredible sightings month we had at Machaba Camp & Little Machaba!

The death of a hippo attracted lions & hyenas in the marsh. Plenty of photographic opportunities there. A rather sad story developed near the Maghoto area: an elephant cow died in labor, attracting one of our big male lions. The next day he had managed to pull the stillborn calf out & happily feasted on it. This attracted a male leopard. Needless to say lion & leopard sharing a meal was a rare & unusual thing – did they get along? Of course not, but both managed to get a share of the spoils being in each other’s vicinity.

Wild dog activity has been good as well – unfortunately a lot more pups were lost – the pack is down to 3 pups surviving. Their killing sprees have been regular & a pleasure to watch. They have crossed the river several times as well.

As for our leopards – phew – what can we say! They have performed over & above their normal duties. Leopards killing lechwe & impalas, pulling them up trees or munching on the ground – we have seen it all! I don’t think a day went by without seeing a leopard – or 2 or even 3!

Wild cats have been spotted a lot lately on night drives – as were honey badgers. And serval cats have been making some more appearances as well. The hyena den is occupied once more & the yelps of little cubs are heard. They have not been sighted yet though – we are all waiting in anticipation for these gorgeous creatures to surface. A lot of buffaloes and elephants have been spotted in our area – they love the riverine landscape in particular.

The rains have held out so far, making the temperatures soar high. It has made however for some amazing game viewing!